Cliff Lee Could Reportedly be Dealt Past the Trade Deadline, Or You Know, Not at All

Just extending the misery of not knowing what the hell Ruben is going to do, Buster Olney pointed out that Cliff Lee would likely clear waivers after the trade deadline due to the amount of money he is owed. This also gives Ruben more time to “evaluate” and OH GOD WON’T SOMEONE MAKE IT STOP.

When he's not writing about sports here or ranting about them on Twitter, Jim is probably watching X-Files on Netflix or drinking a beer somewhere. Jim has nothing against hockey, it's just not his style. He once met Duce Staley at a Sixers game.

10 Comments

ButlerJuly 23, 2014 at 2:24 pm

I really think he’s gonna end up going to the orioles. Their pitching is a mess. If we can get one of harvey/bundy/gausman from them, they need to make the deal immediately, even if they’re putting up 20% or 30% of his salary.

Jayson Stark said something similar but he said that while Cliff Lee would pass through waivers easily, the “major league ready” talent you want in return will not likely pass through waivers which would effectively kill any deal. He can still be traded in the off-season without the hassle of the August waiver deals and he will be owed less money.

Lee is owed approximately $62.5 M over the next 2 1/2 seasons. So a contender gets one of the best pitchers in mlb(when healthy) for 3 postseasons. Phils should eat about $25 M and get a top prospect. Leaving the trading team pay to $37.5 M not bad for 3 seasons ($12.5 AAV). $37.5 M is roughly what Clayton Kershaw will make in 1 year when his new deal kicks in next season.